Harassment suit filed against ex-Oceanside cop

City of Oceanside also named in suit filed by a woman who worked for the Police Department

OCEANSIDE  A woman who worked for the Oceanside Police Department collecting blood samples from drunken-driving suspects is suing the city and a former officer whom she claims harassed her repeatedly at work.

Kimberli Hirst, 48, filed the lawsuit in San Diego Superior Court in September. In it, she alleges that Officer Gilbert Garcia made offensive and unwanted sexual advances toward her, starting in August 2008. The suit says Garcia made sexual comments about Hirst’s body and at one point grabbed her hand and led her to his police vehicle.

According to the lawsuit, Hirst said she reported the harassment to the Oceanside Police Department in May 2009, but the city failed to fully investigate and discipline Garcia in a timely fashion.

Oceanside City Attorney John Mullen said he could not comment on any specific allegations in the lawsuit because of an internal affairs investigation. However, he said the city would refute Hirst’s allegations in court.

Mullen said Garcia, 41, was terminated from the Police Department on Nov. 11, 2009, after starting work there 16 months earlier. The attorney declined to discuss the reasons for Garcia’s dismissal.

Garcia could not be reached for comment.

Hirst worked under contract for the department as a forensic phlebotomist, meaning she drew blood for testing as evidence, primarily in DUI cases, according to her lawyer, Dwight Ritter.

Hirst’s lawsuit names several causes of action, including sexual harassment, retaliation, intentional infliction of emotional distress and negligent supervision. She is seeking damages in an unspecified amount.